In Major Sports, it kind of "sucks" being in a small market.
keets
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I have lived in NE Ohio my entire life and have sort of accepted the fact that rooting for the home Team comes with it's share of agony. Baseball has always been what enjoyed listening to the most and I spent a lot of summer evenings with my Dad in the driveway, sitting on a lawn chair and tuned in with the transistor radio. The Cleveland Indians always had one of two things: good pitching or good hitting, just never both at the same time. They could never compete with the Teams on either coast who had deep pockets.
They can do that now, but it's through their Farm Teams where they develop talent and not with an ability to purchase talent.
MLB is slow this time of year and I missed the Sunday news that the Indians had traded perennial Cy Young candidate Corey Kluber to Texas, but I did see that the Yankees had signed Gerrit Cole to a contract that's probably more than what the Indians budget for a season!! That used to really bother me but I've come to accept it. The big market Teams can afford to have their cake and eat it too while small market Teams can't even attend the party.
What I enjoy now is watching the young talent come up and develop, show what they have for 3-4-5-6-7 years if possible and then move on to win their World Series, Super Bowl or NBA Championship rings. I get to follow that but feel a bit sad because Cleveland owners can't really afford to do that here. The Indians were able to let Kluber go because of the Minor League system's success, bringing up three starters last season when injuries hit the Team hard: Shane Bieber, Zach Plesac and Aaron Civale. They probably will pay those three what Kluber will get in 2021 with a new contract.
Being in a small market tends to mean that the window of success isn't open very wide for very long. If you're from one of the larger markets or root for a Team that is, in any Sport, enjoy it. You probably don't realize how fortunate you are.
Al H.
Comments
Free agency and the salary cap pretty much leveled the playing field.......I HATE BOTH!!!!
You know what they say "If you can't run with the big dogs.....stay on the porch!"
The Tampa Bay Rays come from the smallest of all markets. The attendance is the worst in baseball, and yet they are competitive. The team probably won’t stay in Tampa for much longer, but they have shown you can field a good team in a small market.
What stinks even more is being in a big market town and not winning for years. Before 1999 and 2004 the Pats and Red Sox were an embarrassment. Bruins were not much better and Boston was hanging on by a thread to the Celtics and their sweet 16 for years. No disrespect to Cleveland but the pressure is never on them to be a consistent winner
No disrespect to Cleveland but the pressure is never on them to be a consistent winner
it is clear from this comment that you don't live in the area even though you'd like to think you have the "pulse" of the Teams. as far as MLB and the NFL are concerned, the pressure from the fan base of both is insane, but the owners are restricted in what they can do. the Indians tend to be more successful than the Browns because they make better choices, but both Teams really can't afford to make mistakes with how they spend their money.
Free agency and the salary cap pretty much leveled the playing field
not really. what happened was Teams became more "inventive" with contract structuring and they just pay the Luxury Tax when they go over the cap. in the old days all that mattered was how many fans you could get in the Stadiums, what you charged for tickets and how deep the owners pocket's were. with Revenue Sharing and TV contracts that has been sidestepped. without their big TV contracts the Yankees couldn't do most of what they do, Teams like Cleveland, Detroit, Cincinnatti, Milwaukee, etc. can't compete with that.
just watch as the MLB Free Agent Market heats up and pay attention to who is really active.
Cleveland got rid of Kluber to free up money because they knew they wouldn't be able to keep him after 20120. by doing so, they have allowed themselves a little short of $30 million(by their projections) to use in the FA market. really, who can they compete with?? that's the reality of the market and the forward thinking of how to be able make an offer to Francisco Lindor when his contract is up, I think in 2021.
Lindor is actually a good study in what I'm talking about and comparable to what's been done with Kluber. Cleveland drafted Francisco and it took a couple of years before they were able to sign him. when they did it was evident he'd be their shortstop when things were right. they did what they usually do, traded Asdrubal Cabrera and some months later Lindor came up and has been a star ever since. meanwhile, Cabrera bounced around until he made it back the Washington this year and won his WS ring along with former Tribe catcher Yan Gomes. so it will probably be with Kluber, he's good enough that he'll probably fall somewhere and win a WS.
Cleveland has a fantastic Minor League system, it rivals any organization and develops talent --- cheaply. the problem is that the Big League Team is hamstrung by their small market and can't keep the players it develops.
Keets your right I don’t live in that area and I don’t have the “Pulse” of the fan base , I’m not talking about the “Fan Base” I’m talking on a national level, the National Level always thinks Cleveland is irrelevant when it comes to winning championships. Sorry but that is a fact, every small market team has a good fan base that wants winners. Cleveland isn’t alone
you are right on that.
Spent 3.5 years in Central Ohio and saw one of the most dedicated fan bases in America. Browns, Indians, and Cavs were popular throughout most of the state. Totally agree that MLB favors big market teams - UNFAIR. NBA and NFL have salary cap so evens the playing field. Browns fans always filled the stadium and supported team even when they weren’t doing well. Buckeyes/football & basketball were still the most popular fan base in the whole state unlike the New England area.
waahhhhhhh i only like it when my team can afford more talent wahhhhhh I dont want a level playing field ,
A dumb owner is a bigger roadblock to your team's success
I never really understood the large/small market thing. I have lived in the northeast my whole life and Boston teams have always been the home town ones for me. However, as far as markets go, Boston is only the 21st most populous city in the country. Wouldnt that make Boston a small market?
Seattle, Philadelphia, San Diego, Phoenix, Houston, San Fransisco and Denver are all considerably bigger than Boston, but most of those cities are considered smaller markets.
San Diego has 2x the population of Boston. What gives?
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
ya but boston is cool , san diego is ridiculous .
I feel very bad for Pittsburgh Pirate fans. A once feared franchise has become a joke in the last 25 years. Look at all of the great players that came up in their system and then couldn't afford to keep.
Terry Bradshaw was AMAZING!!
Ignore list -Basebal21
Hang on Keets. LeBron championship. Indians have had some very good seasons including a WS appearance. browns were penciled in for the SB though fell a bit short
. Plenty of towns never have that much excitement.
If there is a complaint it is the expansions to 30 team leagues. Most fans are gonna end the season disappointed.
......unless you're in Wisconsin. Go Pack Go.
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Phoenix sucks as a sports town with the exception of spring training. Almost no one who lives here is from here, and loyalties are from back home.
you forgot to mention is 120 degrees in summer
In the shade.
It's a dry heat.
Stick your head in the oven. That's a dry heat too.
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Ralph
and there in no water so lose power for a week and everyone dies